Synecdoche is arhetoricaltrope and a kind ofmetonymy—a figure of speech using a term to denote one thing to refer to a related thing.[7][8]
Synecdoche (and thus metonymy) is distinct frommetaphor,[9] although in the past, it was considered a sub-species of metaphor, intending metaphor as a type of conceptual substitution (asQuintilian does inInstitutio oratoria Book VIII). In Lanham'sHandlist of Rhetorical Terms,[10] the three terms possess somewhat restrictive definitions in tune with their etymologies from Greek:
Metaphor: changing a word from its literal meaning to one not properly applicable but analogous to it; assertion of identity (A is B)—rather than likeness as withsimile (A is like B);
Metonymy: substituting an attribute of or object associated with something for the thing itself (e.g., substituting "the crown" for "the monarch" is not a synecdoche, since "the crown" is not part of "the monarch").
Synecdoche is often used as a type ofpersonification by attaching a human aspect to a nonhuman thing. It is used in reference to political relations, including "having a footing", to mean a country or organization is in a position to act, or "the wrong hands", to describe opposing groups, usually in the context of military power.[11]
The two main types of synecdoche aremicrocosm andmacrocosm. A microcosm uses a part of something to refer to the entirety.[12] An example of this is saying "I need a hand" with a project, but needing the entire person.[13] A macrocosm is the opposite, using the name of the entire structure of something to refer to a small part.[12] An example of this is saying "the world" while referring to acertain country or part of the planet.[13]The figure of speech is divided into the image (what the speaker uses to refer to something) and the subject (what is referred to).
Sonnets and other forms of love poetry frequently use synecdoches to characterize the beloved in terms of individual body parts rather than a coherent whole. This practice is especially common in thePetrarchan sonnet, where the idealised beloved is often described part by part, head-to-toe.[citation needed]
Synecdoche is also popular in advertising. Since synecdoche uses a part to represent a whole, its use requires the audience to make associations and "fill in the gaps", engaging with the ad by thinking about the product.[14] Moreover, catching the attention of an audience with advertising is often referred to by advertisers with the synecdoche "getting eyeballs".[15] Synecdoche is common in spoken English, especially in reference to sports. The names of cities are used as shorthand for their sports teams to describe events and their outcomes, such as "Denver won Monday's game," while accuracy would require specifying the sports team's name.[15]
Kenneth Burke (1945), an American literary theorist, declared that inrhetoric, the four mastertropes, orfigures of speech, aremetaphor,metonymy, synecdoche, andirony. Burke's primary concern with these four master tropes is more than simply their figurative usage, but includes their role in the discovery and description of the truth.[16] He described synecdoche as "part for the whole, whole for the part, container for the contained, sign for the thing signified, material for the thing made ... cause for the effect, effect for the cause, genus for the species, species for the genus".[17] In addition, Burke suggests synecdoche patterns can include reversible pairs such as disease-cure.[18] Burke proclaimed the noblest synecdoche is found in the description of "microcosm and macrocosm" since microcosm is related to macrocosm as part to the whole, and either the whole can represent the part or the part can represent the whole".[18] Burke compares synecdoche with the concept of "representation", especially in the political sense in whichelected representatives stand inpars pro toto for their electorate.[16]
Referring to a person according to a single characteristic: "gray beard" meaning an old man
Referring to a sword as a "blade"
Describing a complete vehicle as "wheels", or a manual transmission vehicle as a "stick"
Referring to a country's currency by using the common name of a single coin within that currency, such as referring to theCanadian Dollar as "theLoonie"
Floor and table lamps (types of portablelight fixtures) traditionally incorporated one or more replaceable lamps (also known as light bulbs orelectric lights).
General class name that denotes a specific member of that or an associated class
Referring to aspecies of an organism or virus by the name of one of itshierarchical groups, e.g., "Coronavirus [specifically meaning theCOVID-19 virus] is rampant throughout the city."
^Fromἐκδέχομαι (ekdékhomai) 'to take or receive from another' – simplexδέχομαι (dékhomai) 'to receive'.[6] In simpler words, the term comes from GreekSyn, meaning "with" or "along with" (as in synonym) andekdoche, meaning sense or interpretation; thus literally, "interpret along with"
^"συνεκ-δοχή,ἡ,A.understanding one thing with another: hence in Rhet.,synecdoche, an indirect mode of expression,when the whole is put for a partQuint.Inst. 8.6.19,Aristid.Quint. 2.9,Ps.-Plu.Vit.Hom. 22." Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott.A Greek-English Lexicon. Revised and augmented throughout by Sir Henry Stuart Jones with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie. Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1940.
^Jakobson, Roman & Morris Halle (1956).Fundamentals of Language. The Hague: Mouton. p. 95.ISBN978-1178718140.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Lanham, Richard A (1991).A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms: A Guide for Students of English Literature, Second Edition. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London: California University Press. p. 189.ISBN978-0-520-07669-3.
